Hello everyone,
I'm hoping that you all can point me in the right direction here. I've read through most of the tower discussion thread, and it seems like (all things being equal) the RAAL version is almost always the way to go. However, unfortunately I think I might fall in to one of the NrT categories.
Location: Great room / den
Dimensions: 20w x 14L, vaulted ceiling, open to the dining area, kitchen, foyer, and hall leading to the bedroom & office. speakers along the wide wall
Use patterns:
1. I work from home and almost always have music playing on the stereo in my office as well as out in the den.
2. Nightly use for TV/Music/Movies
3. Almost always have music playing while I'm making dinner
3. Music ranges from classic rock, ambient, jazz, and a fair amount of slightly crappy live recordings from various jam bands (Widespread Panic, Black Crowes, Gov't Mule, Phish, etc...)
4. I often have friends over for BBQ, Football, etc... and in those situations there's a fair amount of folks milling around - some standing, some sitting, hanging out in the kitchen, etc...
Background info:
About 5 years ago, when I was still living in an apartment, I had a set of Magnepan MMGs. The only reason I sent them back was I simply didn't have the proper space for them in the apartment. But I learned 2 things from that experience...
1. Ribbons are just awesome with respect to smoothness, clarity & imaging when you are in the sweet spot
2. As soon as you move out of the sweet spot, the whole thing crumbles to pieces. The sound is very diffuse & weak, no impact, no imaging, etc... I would never want to use full planar speakers in an party/entertainment situation.
Concerns & questions:
What I'm not so sure about is whether or not the majority of those problems are due to the fact that the entire speaker (Bass, mids, treble) is planar. What I'm getting at is... The Sierra Towers have traditional bass and midrange drivers, and only have a ribbon tweeter. Is that enough to cause problems similar to full planar speakers, or is it really just a case of having a slightly smaller vertical listening window with the RAALs (10 degree) vs NrT (15 degree)? I know that the RAAL actually has better horizontal dispersion vs the NrT.
Obviously, the question is... am I "probably" safe with the RAAL or am I better off with the NrT? I really want the RAALs because I know what a ribbon can do, but just not sure if that is the right decision because I also have some experience with their limitations.
Thanks for your time everyone, and sorry for being so wordy here. I just wanted to make sure I explained my situation fully.
Also - if anyone else has experience with moving from Energy RC-70s to the Sierra Towers, I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Pics from all 4 corners of the listening area (these are also being sent to GIK Acoustics for room treatment advice):